EVERY BEDAN ATHLETE carries more than the weight of a jersey. Every practice, every road trip, and every off-campus training session rests on an unspoken promise that the university pushing them toward excellence will also bring them home safely. It is a promise that has always existed, but one that now deserves closer attention.
The death of Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili during an off-campus team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora, last June shook the country’s collegiate sports community. In its aftermath, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) strengthened regulations governing off-campus student activities, requiring universities to tighten risk assessments, emergency protocols, and institutional oversight.
For San Beda University (SBU), those directives should not simply be viewed as additional compliance measures. They present an opportunity to ask a more important question: What kind of athletic culture are we building?
For decades, San Beda has earned a reputation as one of the country’s premier collegiate athletic institutions. Bedan athletes have become synonymous with excellence, discipline, and a tradition of winning that extends beyond basketball into the many sports represented by Bedan athletes. Every season begins with familiar expectations; to defend titles, chase championships, and uphold the standard that generations before have established.
Yet behind every championship banner is something far more valuable than a trophy.
Every athlete who wears San Beda’s colors is first a student entrusted to the university’s care. Behind every jersey is a family that sends their child to Mendiola believing the institution will develop not only their talent, but also protect their well-being. Winning games may define a season, but fulfilling that trust defines an institution.
That responsibility has always been part of what San Beda claims to stand for. Ora et labora has been confined to classrooms or chapels. It reflects a philosophy of forming individuals with discipline, integrity, and compassion. Those values should be just as evident during an off-campus training camp as they are during graduation rites or championship celebrations.
As preparations continue for the upcoming season of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, conversations surrounding Bedan athletics should extend beyond game plans and preseason tournaments. They should include discussions about athlete welfare, emergency preparedness, and institutional accountability.
Are safety measures reviewed before every off-campus activity? Are coaches and team officials guided by clear protocols that prioritize athlete welfare alongside performance? Do student-athletes feel empowered to raise concerns when training conditions become unsafe without fearing they might lose their place on the team?
These are not questions born out of suspicion. They are questions rooted in responsibility.
The Aurora tragedy did not happen in San Beda, but its lessons should not remain outside our gates. The universities best prepared to protect their students are not necessarily those that have experienced tragedy, but those willing to examine their own systems before tragedy forces them to.
Compliance with CHED’s directives should therefore be viewed as the minimum, not the goal. The true measure of San Beda’s athletic culture lies in whether safety is treated with the same seriousness as competition. Championships demand commitment, but so does the responsibility of ensuring that every athlete returns home after representing the university.
As Bedans, we take pride in cheering for our athletes. We celebrate every title won, every record broken, and every banner raised. But perhaps the culture worth celebrating is one that values its athletes not only for what they achieve in competition, but for who they are beyond it.
Because the greatest victory San Beda can claim will never be found solely on a scoreboard. It will be found every time a Bedan athlete leaves Mendiola wearing the university’s colors and returns home wearing them still.